Miss Liberty gets mysterious
THE MONUMENT IS IN NEW YORK BY CHANCE
Its creator, Frédéric Auguste Bartholdi, visualized the concept of the Statue of Liberty for the Suez Canal. The original idea was to build a monumental figure as imposing as the Colossus of Rhodes at the entrance to the canal. The sculptor sketched a woman dressed in a stole and a lamp in her hand. The project fell apart Bartholdi took him to various cities in the United States until he piqued the interest of New York.
ITS INAUGURATION CAME 10 YEARS LATE
The statue had to be ready for the centennial of the independence of the United States, which was on July 4, 1776, but it was not. Its construction agonized due to lack of budget and little enthusiasm on the North American side. Communication magnate Joseph Pulitzer carried out a campaign to raise funds and speed up the project. After 9 years of work in Paris, the statue arrived in parts and some of them were exhibited in various parts of the country. Visitors to the Philadelphia World's Fair were able to climb the steps of the torch by paying a 50-cent admission to fund its completion.
Bartholdi, the father of the Statue
HE HAS A FAMILY FACE
Despite the different hypotheses about Bartholdi's inspiration for the face of the monument, the one that has more weight is that he modeled on his mother, Charlotte. The sculptor revealed this information to a French senator when he met his mother at the opera and was amazed at the resemblance to the statue.
HIS ORIGINAL COLOR WAS NOT GREEN
The statue's skin is made of copper and measures less than 3 millimeters thick. An internal iron skeleton designed by Gustave Eiffel, the engineer who built the famous tower in Paris that bears his name, holds the different pieces of the monument, like a puzzle. At the time of its unveiling, the statue was the dark brown color of the copper from which it was made. The effects of oxidation by water turned it green in just two decades.
We owe this color to oxidation
IT ALMOST BECAME A LIGHTHOUSE
After its dedication in 1886, the then president of the United States, Grover Cleveland, commissioned the maintenance of the monument to the lighthouse commission of the country. His goal was to get the light of the torch to guide the ships entering the port. After decades of testing the idea was discarded as it did not achieve enough power.
THE BASE OF THE MONUMENT IS ACTUALLY A DEFENSE FORT
The pedestal of the statue, work of Richard Morris Hunt, towers over Fort Wood, an ancient fortification in the shape of an 11-pointed star that protected New York from possible attack. The fort was built in 1811 on Bedloe Island which was renamed Liberty Island after receiving the monument.
It is located on a defense fort
THE POINTS OF THE HEAD ARE NOT HIS CROWN
The Statue of Liberty wears a crown but the points are not part of it, but rather represent the sparkles of her halo. They are almost three meters long and there are seven in all, one for each continent of the world. Currently, when visiting the monument, you can climb the crown but tickets are sold separately and they must be booked at least three months in advance.
STATUE OF LIBERTY IS JUST A MOTE
Everyone calls her the Statue of Liberty or Miss Liberty, but Bartholdi gave her another name: L to freedom lighting up the world . This is the official.
They are NOT part of your crown
IT IS NOT THE ONLY STATUE OF LIBERTY IN NEW YORK
No need to queue on the ferry to see the statue. There is a replica in the sculpture garden of the Brooklyn Museum. He is only 9 meters tall, five times shorter than her older sister. It was commissioned by William H. Flattau in 1900 to crown one of his stores in Manhattan. The statue was there until 2002 when it was given to the museum.
IN 2019 WILL HAVE A NEW MUSEUM
Until now, the only attraction of visiting Liberty Island is to see the statue, but New York plans a new museum right behind the monument. the new space It will house the original torch that was replaced by the current one in 1986 and will delve into the meaning of freedom that the monument symbolizes. The roof of the museum can be visited to enjoy some of the best views of Manhattan.
This is Miss Liberty's little sister